blockchain in energy forum 2018

Momentum around blockchain in the energy sector has been picking up pace as more proof of concepts are deployed successfully around the world. From transactive energy, to supply chain management, to asset tokenization, this event will get everyone up to speed on the distributed ledger technology and its real-world use cases.

BLOCKCHAIN IN THE ENERGY SECTOR

Join other innovators from utilities, start-ups, investors and policymakers for a day of networking, dynamic conversations, and learning what the future may hold for this technology.

Speakers

Kristen Brown is a Principal with Commonwealth Edison’s Utility of the Future group which is tasked with advancing ComEd’s transition into the future. In this role, Kristen is responsible for identifying and evaluating potential investments in new technologies related to the realities of rapid technical advancement, increasing data availability, pervasive connectivity, and customer choice and control. She specifically focuses on ComEd’s peer-to-peer, transactive energy, and communications infrastructure strategies.

Prior to her role at ComEd, Kristen was a Fellow at the Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency – Energy (ARPA-E). She worked with academic institutions, start-up companies, and large businesses to advance energy technologies in materials design, energy efficiency, and virtual reality. Kristen holds a PhD from Northwestern University in Chemistry and a BS from Georgia Tech in Chemical Engineering.

Alex Anich is the Manager of Renewable Market Intelligence for NRG, Energy Inc., where he oversees the company’s Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) portfolio. Alex leads NRG’s exploration of the application of blockchain technology to the REC and environmental attribute markets. Prior to joining NRG, Alex headed up the Research & Advisory service of Karbone, an NYC based brokerage, project finance and research firm focused on environmental markets. Alex leverages his experience working in the early days of Shell’s renewable energy business to provide a unique perspective on the evolution of energy markets around the world.

Jesse Morris is a Principal in the Electricity Practice of the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) and co-founder of the Energy Web Foundation, a new nonprofit organization dedicated to accelerating development and deployment of blockchain technology in the energy sector. Jesse’s research, convening, and consulting work focuses on understanding the fundamental economics of distributed energy resources and their ability to provide a wide variety of services to the grid through regulatory change and new business models. Over the past several years, he and his colleagues have researched and published in detail RMI’s findings on the economics of battery storage, advanced demand response technologies, and solar plus storage systems in addition to helping large corporates build new business models focused on the grid-edge.Throughout his career in the electricity sector, Jesse has had one focus: partner with utilities, technology providers, developers, and regulatory stakeholders to help distributed energy resources become an integral, widely-accessible part of the global electricity system.

Drury MacKenzie is an experienced entrepreneur in the international energy space, inspired by her time as a Peace Corps volunteer in Haiti. She has also served as a consultant for innovation strategies and business development. She is dedicated to business solutions that increase social and environmental value. At AVANGRID, Drury leads the customer and market-facing platform within New York’s first smart grid ecosystem.

Killian is an engineer with an MS in computer science and applied knowledge of system optimization using neural networks and genetic algorithms. Killian has consulted or sold software to utilities for over 18 years. He was responsible for energy platform sales at Oracle Utilities and business development at Uptake (the fastest growing startup of 2015 according to Forbes, beating Slack and Uber).

With more than ten years of experience in all aspects of commercial energy efficiency programs – design, management, implementation and marketing – as well as a strong understanding of the Energy Efficiency policy and regulatory environment, Lawrence is well versed in the inner workings of the efficiency industry. Lawrence’s broad industry experience runs the gamut, from field auditing to managing relationships with Fortune 100 utility and corporate clients, affording him a unique ability to draw connections between policy driven utility energy efficiency program requirements and bottom line driven business spending.

Rachel Flynn-Kasuba is a Senior Program Manager with National Grid’s New Energy Solutions team, which is focused on developing and launching innovative solutions and technologies that unlock value for National Grid’s customers and communities. She is responsible for identifying and evaluating new partners to make those innovations possible, focusing specifically on the Electric Vehicle space, NY REV Demonstration projects, and Non-Wires Alternatives opportunities. Prior to her role at National Grid, Rachel worked as an Energy Consultant at ICF, focusing on grid modernization for public and private sector clients, including the U.S. Department of Energy. She holds a Dual Masters in Economics and Global Electricity Markets from Johns Hopkins University, SAIS.